Deceptive Appearances
by ScarletRockstar
Summary: Learning that your loved ones have actually been alive for all this 7 years. Hidden meanings behind paintings. They are all deceptive appearances.' Summary; NekoxUchiha.


**Deceptive Appearances**

**I dedicate this chapter to my beta NekoxUchiha, who managed to survive the horrible grammar and spellings through this oneshot and helped me come up with the title for this ^.^ She can be so useful sometimes *smirk***

**Disclaimer****: I don't own any one... Yet.**

**Warnings: None, really... Well spoilers from the tenroujima arc. **

**A/N: Heeey guys! I'm back with yet another one-shot to present to you! It just came up in my head when I was reading'Looking For Alaska' By John Green (I RECOMMEND THE BOOK!) and listening to Nickelbacks'-'Photograph' I hope you will enjoy this and R+F, and criticise .**

**Enjoy!**

**Edited ; 09/07/2013 (for major grammar mistakes NekoxUchiha missed because of the other bigger problems with the chapter)**

We missed seven years of our life for the purpose of sheer survival when our strong bonds managed to activate Fairy Sphere, shielding us from the powerful breath attack that was like Armageddon sent on us by Acnologia. I never knew if that was something to be happy about or something to grief about. We lost seven years worth of time, everyone changed but if we truly died wouldn't we hurt the remaining guild members even more? Leaving them to the torment of Twilight Orge and the idea of never seeing their friends again - who probably lay dead buried with Tenroujima on the bottom of the ocean or became non-existent when the breath wiped our sole existence from the deepest core of our bones. It's like a tsunami washed over the guild, lasting seven years destroying them from the inside, tormenting them but when it finally left, it bought them something good. It bought them us, alive and breathing.

We survived.

We survived a direct attack from a real and gigantic dragon.

There was a lot to catch up on but seeing their smiles, was the best welcome home gift I could have ever asked for. Romeo has grown and his fashion style was much like Natsu's: an orange scarf around his neck, the colour almost making him look childish. Macao became the master of the guild, doing fine but not-so-well with the money he owed to the new guild in Magnolia. Everyone else changed as well. Reedus lost a lot of weight and looked even more like a professional painter, than ever before. Kinana has grown into a well endowed, fine, young woman. Nab...well, he hasn't actually changed. He still sat by the Request Board but never picked a job to go on. Hopeless as ever, but smiling. The smiles were what mattered to me. Even if it was a few days out on Tenroujima for me, it was seven, long and painful years for them.

Maybe this was why after finding out about my father's death and going on a job with Natsu, I walked up to Reedus and asked where he kept all his paintings from the first day of me joining the guild. He led me to the guild's storage room where he closed the door behind me once I pulled on a string, making the bulb flash a soft light around the small room. A very small window sitting at the top of the wall. I was surrounded by a jungle of portraits and paintings all done by Reedus who worked steadily on them using his favourite brush to make the paintings seem almost alive with the detail and meaning behind them. I walked up to one of the biggest paintings that was in front of me, covered by a white sheet which I pulled off.

**'Fairy Tail's Strongest Team'**

The letters were like stars in the night sky, shining at me with their golden light and their bold letters at the top of the painting. I found the scene almost unrealistic but really like us, when I was looking at it closely, tracing our figures on the paper. I realised it was something that came from his own point of view after studying the five of us closely, learning our habits and what kind of friendship we held between ourselves. It held much more meaning than a portrait that someone orders for an amount of money. That was just a portrait of someone, with no real meaning behind. However, this was something that held memories, the loss and the realisation that you might never see your loved ones. I could almost see the stains of tears that soaked the edges of the painting. I could imagine him sobbing while his hand smoothly moved across the white sheet creating the obscure scene.

Happy was munching a fish in the right corner of the 3 foot painting, his eyes hazy and half lidded, the fantasy of having a truck load of fish sparkling in his black orbs. I could almost imagine his tail lazily moving about as he murmured how good the fish tasted. Natsu and Gray were sitting cross legged seemingly playing a game. Gray's hand was resting on one of the buttons from his shirt and the other on the games platform where he was trying to get a point across to Natsu. Natsu on the other hand had his arms crossed and a pout present on his face, as he looked down where Gray was pointing, clearly displeased. His scarf hanging loosely on his neck with a hint of his scar visible. Behind them, I and Erza stood holding a magazine and looking inside amused at something in there. Erza had a sincere smile that stretched on her young and amused face. Her hand resting on her hip while the other one embraced me in a friendly hug, against her cool armour, though I showed no displeasure in the coolness and the hard metal against my body. Looking closer at the painting, I noticed I had my eyes closed, one hand holding the magazine, the other one against my mouth trying to stifle a laugh, a tear of happiness shining in the corner of my eyes.

"Just what were we looking at?" I breathed out, my voice barley audible in the silent room that even held out the fights going on in the main hall of the guild.

The scene was so surreal yet so familiar at the same time. Erza and I, almost sister-like in behaviour towards one another looking through a magazine. I believe it must have been a fashion magazine or an armour magazine that Erza would enjoy to look through. The boys, like them but not like them. In my head they're stuck as little boys in a grown mans' body fighting over everything and nothing in particular, as a way to show their friendship. However, if Erza's standing behind them it wouldn't be a surprise if our normal day together looked like this. Happy's, well, he's just happy. After all, all he needs to achieve his name in means is to have fish. And perhaps, just a little bit more, his friends. Us. A warm feeling spread through me and my heart rate picked up. I will have to ask Reedus if I can have this painting, because I came to love it with all my heart.

"Get a grip. This isn't the only one." With those words, whispered to no one in particular I started looking over smaller paintings, and portraits of missing guild members. I saw a picture of Lisanna, or a set of images on one bigger paper. Her head and shoulders in the middle and different take over's around. Going from a mermaid with a pink to purple tail, to her rosy rabbit with big round sparkly blue eyes. I saw Evergreen and Elfman and maybe the concept of them liking each other was also agreed in the guild while we were away? I found a few portraits of myself but just scanned them quickly and dismissively, not really caring about myself.

One thing that took my interest however was a box in the far corner hidden behind all the paintings. I had the urge to look in it, so I moved aside the paintings and sat cross legged on the floor covered in dust, not caring about getting my clothes dirty. I reached for it and tried to tug it open, but it didn't even budge. I bit my lip, titling my head to the side and took out the a pin from my hair and grabbed one of my keys. This should do the trick. I placed the key in the lock with the pin tugging along and after long minutes of trying to pry it open, it unlocked. There, at the very bottom of the box lay my and Natsu's famous figures. Mine that strips that is. However, something more interesting has caught my attention. It was a black book that lay there silently. The title written in the middle in soft silver colour.

_'Their Journey's End'_

I opened it without second thoughts. On the first page was nothing but hand written words, that were sprawled neatly in the middle of the page, more tear stains all over the page.

It was dated January 16, X784

_'They vanished._

_They're gone._

_R.I.P_

_Fairy Tail'_

I stared blankly at the words, trying to convey their meaning in my mind that became blank. What this some sort of a journal of what happened after we went into a frozen state? I turned the page. I stared and stared and couldn't help but wonder; why? What's the point? It shows us, leaving the guild, our hands in the air, a gentle wave. We were setting off to get to Tenrou island. The last time they saw us. Us clad in smiles and summer clothes despite the snow that covered the streets as we walked confidently out of the guild's doors. I felt something in my throat and a sob escaped my dry lips. I was crying. I was crying because it was their last time seeing us for seven years. More stains of tears started appearing on the painting, as more tears left my eyes. I couldn't help it. All the feelings swelled up inside of me and burst out in one big bubble of confusion. I didn't know what to think any more.

Just how do you get over, being considered dead for seven years?!

I gripped the small pictured novel to my chest and cried a river of tears, that could beat Juvia's any day. I just cried and cried until all that was left was a dry sob, that hurt my throat and bloodshot eyes with wet cheeks. I had to get a grip, there was more pain, more confusion, more bubbles of feelings to burst and to get through with every page. I braced myself for the worst, leaning against the wall and going to the second page. I focused on a note on the top.

_'We couldn't believe they're gone._

_Lahar described Acnologia._

_I took out the feelings on this painting.'_

I could imagine how much pure hatred and agony he threw into the colours that blended together. It was the picture, of Acnologia, and I damn you not, in perfect detail, it's roar hitting the island dead on. A wave around the epic enter of the hit formed, making it look on the painting like the island was sinking into the abyss of the ocean. Acnologia's black scales adored by blue designs shone in the sun, sharp teeth visible, letting out it's roar. Big and strong wings even though frozen in place, they seemed like they were moving, keeping the creature aloft, the tail whipping angrily in the air.

Next set of pictures showed members leaving the weakened guild, the heart broken mages who mourned their friend's death every second of those seven years. It showed how the previous building was shut off from them, the building damaged and left for the rats to occupy. It showed the new guild with hardly anyone in there. There was pictures of twilight Ogre members abusing our family. The last picture. Us in the doorway, smiling apologetically at them. We were back, right? On the last page of the finished novel was another little note.

_'We were wrong. Their journey has only just begun.'_

I was crying. Crying harder than ever. Harder than after my mother's death, after defeating Phantom Lord, after finding out there's no hope and we will die from Acnologia's attack, harder than my father's death. Because this little picture novel moved my heart. So it was natural that I cried. That I cried not only for their pain but for mine as well, right? Because it hurt to put them through this sea of hungry sharks and difficulties before they got to the shore where a bright future with us was awaiting them.

Stay calm, breathe in, breathe out. Tears still streamed down my face but I calmed down, outstretching my legs in front of me and across the wooden floor, resting my head on the wall. A sigh escaping my lips and I realised that my eyes were slowly sliding shut. I was tired, of all those emotions, bursting from bubbles and from the pain suffered by me and my friends.

"LUCY, HOW YOU DOI-" Natsu burst in through the door, slamming it open and the annoying noise rang in my ears.

"Shut up, Natsu." I growled, trying to mute out the noises coming from the main hall, where Erza was screaming about her cake.

"Oh, sorry." He said shutting the door and shuffling his way in, while looking around. He stopped and looked at the painting that had me interested in the very beginning. His eyebrows furrowed forming a crease in between.

"That is not me and ice block!" He stomped his foot angrily and I giggled. He hopped over, crouching in between my widely open legs. Good thing I wore shorts that day. A very good thing. He pointed at the picture novel in my hands and I smiled softly before handing it to him, my blonde locks hiding away my eyes.

"You cried." He pointed out, brushing them away and I just nodded.

"Duh." Was my short reply.

"Why?"

"It hurt, to hurt them, y'know." I whispered. "I really want that painting and the picture novel home with m..." I didn't remember finishing the sentence as my consciousness slipped away from me.

I just vaguely remembered Natsu tucking me in my bed, and pulling the comforter over my body. My mind barely registered the painting against the wall, or the novel on the table. Or Natsu whispering something to me.

We are still in this world, fighting.

It is truly, just the beginning of our journey.


End file.
